In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, we, the inventors, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. We also grow a smaller number of open pollinated seeds of each of these fruits, usually to capture recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as ‘Sierra Pearl’.
The present variety was hybridized by us in 2004 as a first generation cross using ‘August Red’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,363) nectarine as the selected seed parent and an unnamed clingstone peach as the selected pollen parent. The fruit of this cross was gathered that summer, and the seeds were removed, cracked, stratified, germinated, and grown as seedlings on their own root in my greenhouse. Upon reaching dormancy the seedlings were transplanted as a group to a cultivated area of our experimental orchard located near Le Grand, Calif., in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). During the fruit evaluation season of 2008 we selected the present variety as a single tree from the group of seedlings described above. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, we asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of ‘Nemaguard’ (unpatented) rootstock upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its seed parent, ‘August Red’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,363) nectarine by producing nectarines that are medium size, firm, mostly red in skin color, globose in shape, clingstone in type, but is quite distinguished therefrom by producing fruit that is white in flesh color instead of yellow and that matures about twenty days earlier.
The present variety is most similar to ‘August Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,926) nectarine by being self-fruitful, by having globose leaf glands, and by producing nectarines that are similar in size, firm in texture, mostly red in skin color, white in flesh color, globose in shape, clingstone in type and excellent in flavor, but is distinguished therefrom by producing fruit that matures about one week earlier and that has a bitter kernel instead of sweet.